BBC NEWS | World | South Asia | The man who 'discovered' Everest

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href="http://newsvote.bbc.co.uk/mpapps/pagetools/print/news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/south_asia/3193576.stm" class="epl" target="Printer"> <img height="11" hspace="3" align="left" vspace="0" border="0" width="17" alt="" src="http://newsimg.bbc.co.uk/nol/shared/img/v3/print.gif " /> Printable version </a></td> </tr></table></div> </td> </tr> </table> <table width="629" border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0"> <tr> <td colspan="3"><div class="mxb"><div class="sh">The man who 'discovered' Everest<br /></div></div></td> </tr> <tr> <td valign="top" width="416"> <font size="2">   <div class="mvb"> <table border="0" width="416" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0"> <tr> <td valign="bottom" width="58"><img height="55" border="0" width="58" alt="" src="http://newsimg.bbc.co.uk/media/images/39472000/jpg/_39472066_soutik_biswas_5855byl.jpg" /><br clear="all" /></td> <td> <img height="1" hspace="0" vspace="0" border="0" width="10" alt="" src="http://newsimg.bbc.co.uk/shared/img/o.gif" /> </td> <td valign="bottom" width="348"> <div class="mvb"> <span class="byl"> By Soutik Biswas </span> <br /> <span class="byd"> BBC News Online </span> </div> </td> </tr> </table><img height="1" hspace="0" vspace="0" border="0" width="416" alt="" src="http://newsimg.bbc.co.uk/shared/img/999999.gif" /><br /> </div>  <b>One day in 1852 in British-ruled India, a young man burst into an office in the northern Dehra Dun hill town and announced to his boss: "Sir, I have discovered the highest mountain in the world!"</b> <p>  <table cellspacing="0" align="right" border="0" width="203" cellpadding="0"> <tr><td> <div> <img height="152" hspace="0" vspace="0" border="0" width="203" alt="Sickdhar" src="http://newsimg.bbc.co.uk/media/images/39452000/jpg/_39452986_sikdar203.jpg" /> <div class="cap">Radhanath Sickdhar was an intrepid mathematician from Calcutta</div> </div> </td></tr> </table>  After four long and arduous years of unscrambling mathematical data, Radhanath Sickdhar had managed to find out the height of Peak XV, an icy peak in the Himalayas. <p> The mountain - later christened Mount Everest after Sir George Everest, the surveyor general of India - stood at 29,002 feet (8,840 metres). <p> Sickdhar's feat, unknown to many Indians, is now part of the Great Arc Exhibition in London's vibrant Brick Lane. <p> The Indian Government-sponsored exhibition celebrates 200 years of the mapping of the Indian subcontinent. <p> The exercise, which was called "one of the most stupendous works in the whole history of science" was begun by William Lambton, a British army officer, in Madras in 1802. <p> The survey involved several thousand Indians and was named the Great Trigonometrical Survey (GTS) in 1819. <p>  <table cellspacing="0" align="right" border="0" width="203" cellpadding="0"> <tr><td> <div> <img height="152" hspace="0" vspace="0" border="0" width="203" alt="Mount Everest" src="http://newsimg.bbc.co.uk/media/images/39452000/jpg/_39452982_everest203.jpg" /> <div class="cap">Mount Everest, the world's highest mountain, is 29,035 ft high today</div> </div> </td></tr> </table>  It covered more than 1,600 miles and countless people died during the work. Tigers and malaria were the main causes of death. <p> Sickdhar, who was 39 when he made his discovery, was one of the survey's largely unsung heroes. <p>The man from Calcutta was called a "computer" since he worked on computation of data collected by survey parties. <p> He was promoted to the position of "chief computer" because of his good work. <p> <b>'Rare genius'</b> <p> "Mathematical skills were essential for Sickdhar's work and he was acknowledged by George Everest as a mathematician of rare genius," British historian John Keay, author of two books on the subject, told BBC News Online. <p> "His greatest contribution to the computation was in working out and applying the allowance to be made for a phenomenon called refraction - the bending of straight lines by the density of the Earth's atmosphere," said Mr Keay. <p> "Like George Everest himself, [Sickdhar] may have never seen [Mount Everest]." <p> It was first identified as a possible contender for the world's highest peak in 1847 when surveyors glimpsed it from near Darjeeling. <p>  <table cellspacing="0" align="right" border="0" width="203" cellpadding="0"> <tr><td> <div> <img height="152" hspace="0" vspace="0" border="0" width="203" alt="" src="http://newsimg.bbc.co.uk/media/images/39459000/jpg/_39459204_georgeeverest203.jpg" /> <div class="cap">Sir George Everest found Sickdhar a rare mathematical genius</div> </div> </td></tr> </table>  Several observations were recorded over the next three years by different survey parties. <p> But the announcement that it was the highest - thanks to Sickdhar's efforts - was delayed until 1856 as calculations had to be checked repeatedly. <p> Sickdhar, the son of a Bengali Brahmin, was born in October 1813 in Jorasanko, Calcutta's old city. <p> He studied mathematics at the city's renowned Hindoo College and had a basic knowledge of English. <p> A workaholic, Sickdhar never married, instead dedicating his life to knotty mathematical calculations. <p> George Everest was always full of praise for the number-crunching genius. <p> He wrote that Sickdhar was a "hardy, energetic young man, ready to undergo any fatigue, and acquire a practical knowledge of all parts of his profession. <p> "There are a few of my instruments that he cannot manage; and none of my computations of which he is not thoroughly master. He can not only apply formulate but investigate them." <p> Mount Everest has risen higher since Sickdhar's findings. <p> In 1955, the mountain "grew" by 26 ft to 29,028 ft (or by 8 m to 8,848 m). <p> Mount Everest grew another 7 ft (2 m) in 1999 after researchers analysed fresh data from the mountain. <p> Today, the world's highest mountain stands 29,035 ft (8,850 m) high.  </font> <br /><br clear="all" /> <div class="mvtb"><table border="0" width="416" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0"><tr> <td width="213"><a onClick="popUpPage('http://newsvote.bbc.co.uk/mpapps/pagetools/email/news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/south_asia/3193576.stm','status=no,scrollbars=yes,resizable=yes,width=370,height=445','Mailer')" href="http://newsvote.bbc.co.uk/mpapps/pagetools/email/news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/south_asia/3193576.stm" class="epl" target="Mailer"> <img height="11" hspace="3" align="left" vspace="0" border="0" width="17" alt="" src="http://newsimg.bbc.co.uk/nol/shared/img/v3/email.gif" /> E-mail this to a friend </a></td> <td width="203"><a onClick="popUpPage('http://newsvote.bbc.co.uk/mpapps/pagetools/print/news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/south_asia/3193576.stm','status=no,scrollbars=yes,toolbar=yes,resizable=yes,menubar=yes,width=600,height=445','Printer')" href="http://newsvote.bbc.co.uk/mpapps/pagetools/print/news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/south_asia/3193576.stm" class="epl" target="Printer"> <img height="11" hspace="3" align="left" vspace="0" border="0" width="17" alt="" src="http://newsimg.bbc.co.uk/nol/shared/img/v3/print.gif " /> Printable version </a></td> </tr></table></div> <div class="mvtb"> </div><br /> </td> <td width="10" valign="top"><img height="1" hspace="0" vspace="0" border="0" width="10" alt="" src="http://newsimg.bbc.co.uk/shared/img/o.gif" /></td> <td width="203" valign="top"> <div class="puffbox"> <div class="o"> <div class="mph1"> EVEREST CONQUEST 50 YEARS ON </div> <img src="http://newsimg.bbc.co.uk/shared/img/o.gif" width="1" height="5" alt="" border="0" vspace="0" hspace="0"><br /> <div class="nlp"> FEATURES </div> <img src="http://newsimg.bbc.co.uk/shared/img/cccccc.gif" width="203" height="1" alt="" border="0" vspace="3" hspace="0"><br /> <a href="/1/hi/world/south_asia/2938596.stm"><img src="http://newsimg.bbc.co.uk/media/images/39084000/jpg/_39084730_66pb_hillary_53_ap.jpg" align="left" width="66" height="66" alt="1953 file photo of Edmund Hillary" border="0" vspace="3" hspace="0"></a> <img src="http://newsimg.bbc.co.uk/shared/img/o.gif" align="left" width="5" height="66" alt="" border="0" vspace="0" hspace="0"> <a href="/1/hi/world/south_asia/2938596.stm"> <b> Hillary lament </b> </a> <br /> <a href="/1/hi/world/south_asia/2938596.stm"> The mountain's first conqueror criticises those who buy their way to the summit <br clear="all" /> </a> <img src="http://newsimg.bbc.co.uk/shared/img/o.gif" width="1" height="5" alt="" border="0" vspace="0" hspace="0"><br /> <div class="arr"> <a href="/1/hi/world/south_asia/4672545.stm"> Cleaning up Everest's rubbish </a> </div> <div class="arr"> <a href="/1/hi/in_depth/photo_gallery/2948422.stm"> Anniversary in pictures </a> </div> <div class="arr"> <a href="/1/hi/world/south_asia/2941522.stm"> Profile: Sir Edmund Hillary </a> </div> <a href="http://news.bbc.co.uk/olmedia/cta/events03/special/everest/everest.ram"><img height="13" hspace="0" align="left" vspace="2" border="0" width="60" alt="" src="http://newsimg.bbc.co.uk/nol/shared/img/v3/videonews.gif" />Everest collection</a><br clear="all" /> <a href="#" onclick="javascript: void window.open('/1/shared/spl/hi/pop_ups/03/sci_nat_everest_anniversary/html/1.stm', '1054117330', 'toolbar=0,scrollbars=0,location=0,statusbar=0,menubar=0,resizable=0,width=500,height=400,left=280,top=100');"><img height="13" hspace="0" align="left" vspace="2" border="0" width="54" alt="" src="http://newsimg.bbc.co.uk/nol/shared/img/v3/opennews.gif" />A history in pictures</a><br clear="all" /> <img src="http://newsimg.bbc.co.uk/shared/img/cccccc.gif" width="203" height="1" alt="" border="0" vspace="3" hspace="0"><br /> <div class="nlp"> IN THEIR STEPS - A DAILY DIARY </div> <div class="ddt"></div> <table border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0"><form method="post" action="http://www.bbc.co.uk/cgi-bin/openurl.pl"><tr><td> <select name="link" class="formatStyle" onchange="if (this.options[selectedIndex].value != '') location.href=this.options[selectedIndex].value"> <option value="http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/2948168.stm">Day to remember</option> <option value="http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/2945048.stm">Helicopter crash</option> <option value="http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/2941474.stm">Worrying waits</option> <option value="http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/2937470.stm">Base camp life</option> <option value="http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/2935274.stm">Icefall perils</option> <option value="http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/2930888.stm">Summit success</option> <option value="http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/3048629.stm">Waiting in line</option> <option value="http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/3041421.stm">Arrival at camp</option> <option value="http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/3037951.stm">Sober reminder</option> <option value="http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/3036601.stm">Stark warning</option> <option value="http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/3034829.stm">Weather worries</option> <option value="http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/3032427.stm">Eco-concern</option> <option value="http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/3028601.stm">Careful steps</option> <option value="http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/3025769.stm">Monastery</option> <option value="http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/3021381.stm">New technology</option> <option value="http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/3018699.stm">Sherpa town</option> <option value="http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/3015983.stm">Setting off</option> </select> <input border="0" type="image" src="/nol/shared/img/v3/go_button.gif" value="GO"> </td></tr></form></table> <img src="http://newsimg.bbc.co.uk/shared/img/cccccc.gif" width="203" height="1" alt="" border="0" vspace="3" hspace="0"><br /> <div class="nlp"> NEWS </div> <img src="http://newsimg.bbc.co.uk/shared/img/o.gif" width="1" height="5" alt="" border="0" vspace="0" hspace="0"><br /> <div class="arr"> <a href="/1/hi/world/south_asia/2945690.stm"> Everest half-century celebrated </a> </div> <div class="arr"> <a href="/1/hi/uk/2947670.stm"> Queen meets Everest heroes </a> </div> <div class="arr"> <a href="/1/hi/world/south_asia/2942868.stm"> Fatal helicopter crash on Everest </a> </div> <div class="arr"> <a href="/1/hi/world/south_asia/2937734.stm"> Climbers break more records </a> </div> <img src="http://newsimg.bbc.co.uk/shared/img/cccccc.gif" width="203" height="1" alt="" border="0" vspace="3" hspace="0"><br /> <div class="nlp"> FROM THE ARCHIVE </div> <img src="http://newsimg.bbc.co.uk/shared/img/o.gif" width="1" height="5" alt="" border="0" vspace="0" hspace="0"><br /> <div class="arr"> <a href="/onthisday/hi/dates/stories/may/29/newsid_2492000/2492683.stm"> 1953: Hillary and Tenzing conquer Everest </a> </div> <img src="http://newsimg.bbc.co.uk/shared/img/cccccc.gif" width="203" height="1" alt="" border="0" vspace="3" hspace="0"><br /> <div class="nlp"> ASK THE EXPERT </div> <img src="http://newsimg.bbc.co.uk/shared/img/o.gif" width="1" height="5" alt="" border="0" vspace="0" hspace="0"><br /> <div class="arr"> <a href="/1/hi/talking_point/2932072.stm"> Question Sir Chris Bonington </a> </div> <img src="http://newsimg.bbc.co.uk/nol/shared/img/v3/line_hyper.gif" width="203" height="2" alt="" border="0" vspace="3" hspace="0"><br /> </div> <img height="10" width="1" alt="" src="/shared/img/o.gif" /><br /></div> <div class="nlp"> RELATED INTERNET LINKS: </div> <div class="arr"> <a href="http://www.mnteverest.net/history.html"> Mount 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BBC NEWS | World | South Asia | The man who 'discovered' Everest